I just put a complaint about a title company I just dealt with. This was the complaint. They said they didn’t handle this type of complaint and sent to the federal level-the Federal Trade commission sent me a sheet on 10 ways to avoid fraud? Go figure. No one has helped me with this injustice against my client who is out $100 because of the title company who didn’t do their job.

Integrity Title refused to take responsibility for a $100 overcharge because they failed to request the estoppel from the property management company in a timely manner. . The mistake was theirs and they pushed that charge onto my client.. They had 17 days to get the estoppel without a rush charge if it had been ordered in a timely manner.. Integrity Title has no integrity and my client needs to be made whole. We trusted them to do a job and they failed miserably. RESPA should investigate them and their practices as they are dangerous to consumers.

Not so sure you are on point with the scorn on having $4,200 on a prepaid card. I agree 100% with the idea of ‘credit education.’

Here’s an example. I maintain two credit accounts from financial institutions – not store cards or other cards less likely to help my credit score. One is for 5K and I use it for traveling – hotel, airfare, car rental, etc. – and pay off within 60 days. The other is for 25K. It’s my ’emergency fund’ for disaster use. I use both every two months or so to keep active and payoff immediately. I check online every 3 days to check for issues.

My corporate account is split into two accounts – savings with the bulk of funds and checking in which I transfer funds on the 1st for anticipated operating costs. I check account status daily. Most expenses are paid online using a debit card attached to the checking account.

Here’s the point. How is my debit card different from a prepaid card in principal? The difference is the institution. A couple of years ago I woke up to find that I had allegedly bought $1,200 in car parts from a auto supplier in Georgia, $1,800 in clothes from a non-existent store in San Diego and another $1,000 from some weird internet address. My bank froze the payments, restored my funds while they were investigating the same day and we killed the debit card and replaced it with another (that took 3 days to get the new card). Some aggravation from the whole affair but minimal and not my bank’s fault.

I have seen stats that indicate that somewhere around 30% of the population uses non-bank institutions such as Green Dot or Amscot as their ‘banking system.’ They pay higher fees, get less service and generally are at the mercy of largely unregulated companies.

Yes, these companies are taking on riskier clientele. I am not a fan of Elizabeth Warren who would simply take away these alternatives for the poorer portion of the population. Nor do I want more regulation other than setting basic rules. But admittedly, many people live their lives in a manner that is simply unacceptable to regular banking institutions.

Consumer advocates would be better off pursuing ‘prevention’ rather than ‘correction after the fact.’ We should be teaching life skills of managing basic finances in every high school in the country. Too often, the first time some of these people (the so called ‘underserved’) are getting any education on these basics is from a loan officer when they are applying to buy a home. They seem to have little grasp of the concept that how they have treated credit and bills in the past affects the cost of credit in the future. Don’t expect Green Dot to become their mentors. By the time Green Dot has them, it’s pretty much too late. Let’s start teaching the principles of responsible credit use, budgeting, SAVING, and rudimentary financial planning when it would be most valuable – before they have damaged their future. It won’t help all but it would make life much easier and rewarding for many. If nothing else, it would certainly make my job easier.

We would also see a better banking system with less need for a CFPB (or now the BCFP) since we would have less clueless victims – consumers could better police the industry with their feet. Teach the basics and teach personal responsibility and teach them before they are out in the world on their own and we will go a long way to reducing the perceived need for overwhelming regulation which never seems to really help the consumers but mostly feeds the bureaucracy.

The RESource Weekly

Ryan Hills and his team over at the RESource are great friends of ours. Tune-in their latest weekly episode right here on the home page of the National Real Estate Post. Ryan delivers fantastic content beneficial for both mortgage and real estate professionals.

Lab Coat Agents

"Exploring the Science of Real Estate" is the essence of Lab Coat Agents. LCA and NREP Daily have a partnership in place that's focused on bringing mortgage originators and real estate agents together. Displayed above is their most recent content with respect to our new COVID-19 environment and it's updated in real time so check every day for new information.

Bearded Men of Real Estate

Two of our favorite guys over here at the NREP Daily. Ray and Dan are true leaders within the real estate industry and their weekly shows prove it. They bring great content and amazing guests to you in a fun and interactive way. Be sure to visit them by clicking the button below so you get notified when they go "live" on Facebook. Trust us, these guys are great!

Mortgage News Network

Andrew Berman is a wonderful friend of the NREP Daily. His MNN shows are always insightful with great guests. Be sure to tune-in to MNN right her on the National Real Estate Post to see what Andrew has in store for you. Great content for mortgage and real estate pros alike!

Realtor Magazine

Realtor Magazine has interesting content that is useful to both real estate and mortgage professionals. Here you’ll see their most recent video content updated in real time as released by Realtor Magazine.

Mortgage Bankers Association

The MBA always had relevant news and insights that greatly benefit any mortgage or real estate professional. Tune-in here regularly at the National Real Estate Post to see what's going on up on "the hill" so you can make better decisions and have better dialogue with your customers.

The RESource Weekly

Ryan Hills and his team over at the RESource are great friends of ours. Tune-in their latest weekly episode right here on the home page of the National Real Estate Post. Ryan delivers fantastic content beneficial for both mortgage and real estate professionals.

Lab Coat Agents

"Exploring the Science of Real Estate" is the essence of Lab Coat Agents. LCA and NREP Daily have a partnership in place that's focused on bringing mortgage originators and real estate agents together. Displayed above is their most recent content with respect to our new COVID-19 environment and it's updated in real time so check every day for new information.

Bearded Men of Real Estate

Two of our favorite guys over here at the NREP Daily. Ray and Dan are true leaders within the real estate industry and their weekly shows prove it. They bring great content and amazing guests to you in a fun and interactive way. Be sure to visit them by clicking the button below so you get notified when they go "live" on Facebook. Trust us, these guys are great!

Mortgage News Network

Andrew Berman is a wonderful friend of the NREP Daily. His MNN shows are always insightful with great guests. Be sure to tune-in to MNN right her on the National Real Estate Post to see what Andrew has in store for you. Great content for mortgage and real estate pros alike!

Realtor Magazine

Realtor Magazine has interesting content that is useful to both real estate and mortgage professionals. Here you’ll see their most recent video content updated in real time as released by Realtor Magazine.

Mortgage Bankers Association

The MBA always had relevant news and insights that greatly benefit any mortgage or real estate professional. Tune-in here regularly at the National Real Estate Post to see what's going on up on "the hill" so you can make better decisions and have better dialogue with your customers.